Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps

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Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps
XJBT cities in yellow
Active	1954 – present
Country	People's Republic of China
Allegiance	Chinese Communist Party
Type	State-owned enterprise Paramilitary organisation
Size	2.6 million
Headquarters and area served	Ürümqi & Xinjiang
Nickname(s)	XJBT Bingtuan ("The Corps")
Divisions	14
Website	www.xjbt.gov.cn
Commanders
First Political Commissar	Ma Xingrui
Political Commissar and Party Secretary	Li Yifei
Commander	Xue Bin
Notable commanders	Tao Zhiyue[1]

Part of a series on the
History of Xinjiang
Ancient period Tocharians Yuezhi Xiongnu Western Regions (Han Protectorate; Chief Officials) Kingdom of Khotan Former Liang Former Qin Later Liang Western Liang Gaochang Rouran First Turkic Khaganate Western Turkic Khaganate Eastern Turkic Khaganate Second Turkic Khaganate
Medieval and early modern period Tang Protectorates (West; Beiting) Tibetan Empire Uyghur Khaganate Kara-Khanid Khanate Kingdom of Qocho Qara Khitai Mongol Empire (Yuan; Chagatai Khanate) Moghulistan (Turpan; Yarkent) Ming ruled Kara Del Dzungar Khanate Kumul Khanate Yettishar Qing rule (Dzungar genocide Dungan Revolt Qing reconquest)
Modern period Xinjiang Province, Republic of China (Xinjiang clique 1st East Turkestan Republic 2nd East Turkestan Republic) Xinjiang Province, People's Republic of China Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Production and Construction Corps Xinjiang conflict Xinjiang internment camps / Persecution of Uyghurs in China)
v t e

The Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XJBT; 新疆生产建设兵团; 新疆兵团), also known as Bingtuan ("The Corps"), trading as the external name China Xinjian Group,^[2] is a state-owned enterprise and paramilitary organization in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

The XJBT was established in 1954 under the orders of Mao Zedong, and developed sparsely populated areas in its early decades, taking the model of the traditional tuntian system of setting military units in frontier areas. The XJBT was severely damaged during the Cultural Revolution, and was outright abolished in 1975, before being re-established in 1981, partly due to the Soviet-Afghan War. It re-established its economic dominance over Xinjiang afterwards, also being responsible for maintenance against the "three evils" (separatism, religious extremism, and terrorism). In its history, the XJBT has built farms, towns, and cities, provided land and employment to disbanded military units, and re-settled Han migrants from other parts of China in what has been called a campaign of assimilation.

The XJBT operates cities, where it provides prisons, healthcare, policing, judiciary, and education, and has stakes in numerous publicly traded companies. It is extensively involved in economic, political and military affairs of Xinjiang, being called a "state in a state".^[3][4] It is led by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Xinjiang Committee secretary, currently Ma Xingrui, though the CCP secretary of the XJBT handles the daily affairs of the organization.^{[citation needed]}